India rejects OIC references on J-K, says 'no locus standi' on internal matters

New Delhi, Sep 23 (UNI) India on Wednesday strongly rejected the "unwarranted and factually incorrect" references to the country in a joint communique issued by the OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir, asserting that the grouping has no locus standi to comment on matters that are strictly internal to India.

The Ministry of External Affairs made clear that the entire union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are "integral and inalienable part of India", and asserted that "no amount of repetition of politically motivated propaganda can change this reality". Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said in a post on X on Wednesday that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar addressed the ministerial meeting of the OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir on the sidelines of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in New York. Dar urged OIC member states to maintain a "unified position" on Jammu and Kashmir at the United Nations and other international fora.

He also reiterated Pakistan's commitment to a "just and peaceful settlement of the dispute in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people", the post said. The references to Jammu and Kashmir drew a sharp response from New Delhi. "India categorically rejects the unwarranted and factually incorrect references to India in the Joint Communique of the so-called OIC Contact Group on Jammu & Kashmir. The OIC has no locus standi to pronounce on matters that are strictly internal to India," the MEA said in a statement.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal shared India's statement on X regarding the references to India in the joint communique of the OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir. In the statement, the MEA also said, "Repeated endorsement of such motivated narratives only raises serious questions on the credibility of OIC." "Instead of offering a platform to Pakistan to peddle its fabricated and motivated propaganda,

OIC will be better advised to counsel Pakistan, which has a well-documented record of supporting and sponsoring terrorism, to look inwards and address the continuing threat of terrorism emanating from territories under its control," it said.

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